Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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PRE-FETCHING MAP TILE DATA ALONG A ROUTE
FIELD OF TECHNOLOGY
[0001] The present disclosure relates to map rendering systems, such as
electronic map
display systems, and more specifically to a method of and system for pre-
fetching map data
from a remote database.
BACKGROUND
[0002] With the widespread use of mobile devices, such as mobile phones,
personal data
assistants, tablet personal computers, etc., consumer demand for ready access
to varied types
of data continues to grow at a high rate. These devices are used to transmit,
receive, and
store text, voice, image, and video data. Consumers often look to store large
numbers of
applications on these devices, such that mobile devices are often touted more
for the number
of available applications, than internal processor speed. While consumers have
come to
desire fast access to data, the sheer amount of data required to run these
applications places a
premium on data management, which may apply on both the device level and at
the network
level. This premium may limit the effectiveness of applications such as
mapping
applications, which may typically require comparatively large amounts of
network data (e.g.,
for systems that retrieve map data from a remote database).
[0003] Mapping applications are found in a variety of mobile devices,
including car
navigation systems, hand-held GPS units, mobile phones, and portable
computers. These
applications are among the most frequently used applications and are
considered, by some,
necessary for personal safety. Although the underlying digital maps are easy
to use from a
user's perspective, creating a digital map is a data intensive process. Every
digital map
begins with a set of raw data corresponding to millions of streets and
intersections. That raw
map data is derived from a variety of sources, each providing different
amounts and types of
information. To effectively map a location, locate a driving route between a
source and a
destination, identify points of interest, etc. requires substantial amounts of
data. Furthermore,
many mapping applications require a display of different map data at different
zoom levels,
i.e., different scales, where the amount of detail and the nature of that
detail changes at each
zoom level. For example, at a lowest zoom level, scaled furthest away from a
target, the map
data may contain the boundaries of continents, oceans, and major landmasses.
At subsequent
zoom levels, that map data may identify countries, states, homelands,
protectorates, other
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major geographic regions. While at even further subsequent zoom levels, that
map data may
contain major roads, cities, towns, until eventually the map data contains
minor roads,
buildings, down to even sidewalks and walk ways depending on the region. The
amount of
detail is determined by the sources of information used to construct the map
data at each
zoom level. But no matter the zoom level, the amount of information is
voluminous and may
be generally too large for storage, in total, on mobile devices and too large
for continuous
download over a wireless communication network.
[0004] In operation, mapping applications typically download map data to the
mobile
device through a wireless communication network and in response to a user
entering a
location of interest and/or based on the current location of the mobile
device, such as the
current global positioning satellite (GPS) data or current cellular network
location data for the
device. A conventional technique for downloading map data is to have the
mobile device
communicate this location data to a remote processor on the wireless
communication
network, which, in response, downloads all map data to the mobile device or
the map data
requested for display to the user.
[0005] Map data may generally be stored in blocks known as map data tiles,
where the
number of map data tiles increases with zoom level. The remote processor
provides a subset
of the available map data tiles for a particular location or region to the
mobile device for
storage and display at any particular time via a map display application. By
providing large
numbers of map data tiles, the mobile device may buffer the map data for
display to the
consumer as the consumer scrolls across an area using the mapping application
looking for
adjacent or other mapping locations. However, the larger the number of map
data tiles
provided at any particular time, the longer the download time and the higher
the buffer
memory usage while the user is using the map display application.
[0006] Map data tiles may be downloaded and cached in an inefficient manner
that may
not take advantage of a viewing context to more efficiently retrieve higher
priority mapping
data over lower priority data. One such viewing context relates to map data
with respect to
pre-fetching map data for different portions of a route. Pre-fetching data for
later usage is
important in mobile devices where a connection to a map database (e.g., via a
map database
server) may only be intermittent at best. Further, because mobile computing
devices are
generally more bandwidth and processor limited than, for example, a desktop
computer,
efficiency of retrieval and processing of map data is even more critical in
mobile
applications. As a result, there is a need to have more intelligent mechanisms
for retrieving
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(e.g., downloading) and/or processing map data, in particular map data tiles,
to sufficiently
satisfy visual requirements of a limited computing device without wasting
bandwidth and
processing services.
SUMMARY
[0007] A computer-implemented method for pre-fetching map data for a mapping
application includes receiving information on a route including an origin, a
destination, and a
set of paths connecting the origin and the destination and determining a first
tile radius
associated with the origin, a second tile radius associated with the
destination, and a first set
of map tile radii associated with a set of points along the route between the
origin and the
destination. The set of paths or roads may have a sequence. Each of the first
tile radius, the
second tile radius and the first set of tile radii correspond with a first, a
second, and a third set
of pre-fetch map data tiles, respectively. The first, the second, and the
third set of pre-fetch
map data tiles correspond with map surface areas around the origin, the
destination and the
route, respectively. The method accesses from a map database, the first, the
second, and the
third pre-fetch map data tiles. The map database stores the map data in the
form of a plurality
of map data tiles, and the first, the second, and the third pre-fetch map data
tiles comprise a
subset of the plurality of map data tiles. The method further stores the pre-
fetch map data
tiles in a local memory on a client device.
[0008] A computer device may comprise a communications network interface, one
or more
processors, one or more memories coupled to the one or more processors, and a
display
device coupled to the one or more processors. The one or more memories may
include
computer executable instructions stored therein that, when executed by the one
or more
processors, cause the one or more processors to receive, via a computer
programming
application, information on a route including an origin, a destination, and a
set of paths
connecting the origin and the destination. The instructions may further cause
a processor to
determine a first set of map tile radii associated with a set of points along
the route including
the origin and the destination, wherein first set of map tile radii define a
first set of pre-fetch
map data tiles corresponding to map surface areas around and including the
route. The
instructions may still further cause a processor to access, from a map
database, the first set of
pre-fetch map data tiles corresponding to the route. The map database may
store the map
data as a plurality of map data tiles, and the first set of pre-fetch map data
tiles may comprise
a subset of the plurality of map data tiles. The instructions may then cause a
processor to
store the first set of pre-fetch map data tiles in a local memory on a client
device.
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[0009] A further computer device may comprise a communications network
interface, one
or more processors, one or more memories coupled to the one or more
processors, and a
display device coupled to the one or more processors. The one or more memories
may
include computer executable instructions stored therein that, when executed by
the one or
more processors, cause the one or more processors to receive, via a computer
programming
application, information on a route including an origin, a destination, and a
set of paths
connecting the origin and the destination. The instructions may further cause
a processor to
determine a first, second and third set of pre-fetch map data tiles. The first
set may
correspond to map surface areas around and including the origin. The second
set of pre-fetch
map data tiles may correspond to map surface areas around and including the
destination.
The third set of pre-fetch map data tiles may correspond to map surface areas
around the
route between the origin and the destination. The instructions may still
further cause a
processor to access, from a map database, the first set, the second set, and
the third set of pre-
fetch map data tiles corresponding to the route, wherein the map database
stores the map data
as a plurality of map data tiles, and the first set of pre-fetch map data
tiles comprise a subset
of the plurality of map data tiles. Finally, the instructions may cause a
processor to store the
first set, the second set, and the third set of pre-fetch map data tiles in a
local memory on a
client device.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] Fig. 1 is a high-level block diagram of a map imaging system that
implements
communications between a map database stored in a server and one or more map
image
rendering devices.
[0011] Fig. 2 is a high level block diagram of an image rendering engine used
to render
map images using map vector data.
[0012] Fig. 3 illustrates a portion of a data structure that can be used in
the map database of
Fig. 1.
[0013] Figs. 4A, 4B, and 4C illustrate example renditions of map data at three
different
zoom levels, respectively.
[0014] Fig. 5 illustrates a viewing window displaying a route.
[0015] Fig. 6 illustrates a route showing discrete areas around the route
corresponding to
map data tiles.
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[0016] Fig. 7 illustrates map data tiles including identified pre-fetch map
data tiles
corresponding to a map tile radius.
[0017] Fig. 8 illustrates two points 802, 804 along a route segment 810 (e.g.,
a road
segment) with corresponding tile radii 810.
[0018] Fig. 9 illustrates a process flow for determining pre-fetch map data
tiles using tile
radii.
[0019] Fig. 10 illustrates an area corresponding to map data that encompasses
a determined
route.
[0020] Fig. 11A illustrates a map display of a route that has a special point
of interest on
the route between an origin and a destination.
[0021] Fig. 11B illustrates a map display of a route having a point of
interest offset from
the route.
[0022] Fig. 12 illustrates map data tiles including identified pre-fetch map
data tiles for
two different zoom levels.
[0023] Fig. 13 illustrates a process flow for determining a sequence of access
of sets of
map data tiles which can be pre-fetched.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0024] The present application generally relates to pre-fetching map data from
a map
database. Pre-fetching map data may refer to access/retrieval of map data by
an application
or device before the map data is immediately required for use. In one
embodiment, map data
may be pre-fetched before an initiation of a function that uses the pre-
fetched data. For
example, map data from a map database may be accessed and/or retrieved by a
computing
device before a user activates or executes a function (e.g., a display or
rendering function) to
use that map data. A benefit of pre-fetching the map data is that during
periods in which a
map database is unavailable (e.g., when a mobile computing device is offline),
the pre-
fetched map data may be available to a mapping application or computing device
to provide
some services or functions, such as displaying a pre-fetched route. Generally,
a route
includes two endpoints (e.g., origin and destination) and a set of paths or
roads connecting the
two endpoints. The set of paths or roads may have a sequence. The sequence may
also
correspond to a direction of travel. Routes and route types are described in
more detail
below.
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[0025] More specifically, the present application describes techniques for
fetching map
data as a selected subset of entire map data available, by selecting map data
tiles
corresponding to an area that encompasses a route. An amount of map data
accessed may be
adjusted based on a priority of points along the route. In an example
implementation, greater
amounts of map data may be fetched or retrieved for endpoints of the route
(representing
origin and destination locations) than for points in the middle of the route.
For determining
what map data corresponds to an area about the route, a set of map tile radii
may be used to
designate map data tiles to be accessed that correspond to areas of a map
surface along the
route.
[0026] Referring now to Fig. 1, a map-related imaging system 10, according to
an
embodiment, may include a map database 12 stored in a server 14 or in multiple
servers
located at, for example, a central site or at various different spaced apart
sites, and also may
include multiple map client devices 16, 18, 20, and 22, each of which may be
configured to
store and implement a map rendering device or a map rendering engine. The map
client
devices 16-22 may be connected to the server 14 via any hardwired or wireless
communication network 25, including for example a hardwired or wireless local
area network
(LAN), metropolitan area network (MAN) or wide area network (WAN), the
Internet, or any
combination thereof. The map client devices 16-22 may be, for example, mobile
phone
devices (18), computers such a laptop, tablet, desktop or other suitable types
of computers
(16, 20) or components of other imaging systems such components of automobile
navigation
systems (22), etc. Moreover, the client devices 16-22 may be communicatively
connected to
the server 14 via any suitable communication system, such as any publically
available and/or
privately owned communication network, including those that use hardwired
based
communication structure, such as telephone and cable hardware, and/or wireless
communication structure, such as wireless communication networks, including
for example,
wireless LANs and WANs, satellite and cellular phone communication systems,
etc.
[0027] The map database 12 may store any desired types or kinds of map data
including
raster image map data and vector image map data. However, the image rendering
systems
described herein may be, in some embodiments, optimized for use with vector
image data
which may define or include a series of vertices or vertex data points for
each of numerous
sets of image objects, elements or primitives within an image to be displayed.
Generally
speaking, each of the image objects defined by the vector data may have a
plurality of
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vertices associated therewith and these vertices may be used to display a map
related image
object to a user via one or more of the client devices 16-22.
[0028] As will also be understood, each of the client devices 16-22 may
include an image
rendering engine having one or more processors 30, one or more memories 32, a
display
device 34, and in many cases a rasterizer or graphics card 36 which may be
generally
programmed and interconnected in known manners to implement or to render
graphics
(images) on the associated display device 34. The display device 34 for any
particular client
devices 16-22 may be any type of electronic display device such as a liquid
crystal display
(LCD), a light emitting diode (LED) display, a plasma display, a cathode ray
tube (CRT)
display, or any other type of known or suitable electronic display.
[0029] Generally, speaking, the map-related imaging system 10 of Fig. 1 may
operate such
that a user, at one of the client devices 16-22, may open or execute a map
application (not
shown in Fig. 1) that operates to communicate with and to obtain map
information or map
related data from the map database 12 via the server 14, and that may then
display or render a
map image based on the received map data. The map application may allow the
user to view
different geographical portions of the map data stored in the map database 12,
to zoom in or
zoom out on a particular geographical location, to rotate, spin or change the
two-dimensional
or three-dimensional viewing angle of the map being displayed, etc. More
particularly, when
rendering a map image on a display device or a display screen 34 using the
system described
below, each of the client devices 16-22 may download map data in the form of
vector data
from the map database 12 and may process that vector data using one or more
image shaders
to render an image on the associated display device 34.
[0030] Referring now to Fig. 2, an image generation or imaging rendering
device 40
associated with or implemented by one of the client devices 16-22 is
illustrated in more
detail. The image rendering system 40 of Fig. 2 may include two processors 30a
and 30b,
two memories 32a and 32b, a user interface 34 and a rasterizer 36. In this
case, the processor
30b, the memory 32b and the rasterizer 36 may be disposed on a separate
graphics card
(denoted below the horizontal line), although this need not be the case in all
embodiments.
For example, in other embodiments, a single processor may be used instead. In
addition, the
image rendering system 40 may include a network interface 42, a communications
and
storage routine 43 and one more map applications 48 having map display logic
therein stored
on the memory 32a, which may be executed on the processor 30a. Likewise one or
more
image shaders in the form of, for example, vertex shaders 44 and fragment
shaders 46 are
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stored on the memory 32b and are executed on the processor 30b. The memories
32a and
32b may include either or both volatile and non-volatile memory and the
routines and shaders
may be executed on the processors 30a and 30b to provide the functionality
described below.
The network interface 42 may include any well known software and/or hardware
components
that operate to communicate with, for example, the server 14 of Fig. 1 via a
hardwired or
wireless communications network to obtain image data in the form of vector
data for use in
creating an image display on the user interface or display device 34. The
image rendering
device 40 may also include a data memory 49, which may be a buffer or volatile
memory for
example, that stores vector data received from the map database 12, the vector
data including
any number of vertex data points and one or more lookup tables as will be
described in more
detail.
[0031] During operation, the map logic of the map application 48 may execute
on the
processor 30 to determine the particular image data needed for display to a
user via the
display device 34 using, for example, user input, GPS signals, prestored logic
or
programming, etc. The display or map logic of the application 48 may interact
with the map
database 12, using the communications routine 43, by communicating with the
server 14
through the network interface 42 to obtain map data, preferably in the form of
vector data or
compressed vector data from the map database 12. This vector data may be
returned via the
network interface 42 and may be decompressed and stored in the data memory 49
by the
routine 43. In particular, the data downloaded from the map database 12 may be
a compact,
structured, or otherwise optimized version of the ultimate vector data to be
used, and the map
application 48 may operate to transform the downloaded vector data into
specific vertex data
points using the processor 30a. In one embodiment, the image data sent from
the server 14
may include vector data generally defining data for each of a set of vertices
associated with a
number of different image elements or image objects to be displayed on the
screen 34 and
possibly one or more lookup tables. If desired, the lookup tables may be sent
in, or may be
decoded to be in, or may be generated by the map application 48 to be in the
form of vector
texture maps which are known types of data files typically defining a
particular texture or
color field (pixel values) to be displayed as part of an image created using
vector graphics.
More particularly, the vector data for each image element or image object may
include
multiple vertices associated with one or more triangles making up the
particular element or
object of an image. Each such triangle includes three vertices (defined by
vertex data points)
and each vertex data point has vertex data associated therewith. In one
embodiment, each
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vertex data point includes vertex location data defining a two-dimensional or
a three-
dimensional position or location of the vertex in a reference or virtual
space, as well as an
attribute reference. Each vertex data point may additionally include other
information, such
as an object type identifier that identifies the type of image object with
which the vertex data
point is associated. The attribute reference, referred to herein as a style
reference or as a
feature reference, references or points to a location or a set of locations in
one or more of the
lookup tables downloaded and stored in the data memory 43.
[0032] Generally speaking, map data in the map database 12 for a particular
geographic
region may be stored in different zoom levels, where each zoom level is formed
of a plurality
of map data blocks, termed map data tiles, which may be used, in one
embodiment, to
construct a visual display of the map or surface of the map at different
levels of detail. Fig. 3
illustrates an example data structure 200 of a portion of the map database 12.
The map data
for a particular geographic region may be stored in numerous (n) different
zoom level data
structures (only three of which are shown) 202A, 202B, and 202C, where each
data structure
is formed by a plurality of map data tiles. The data structure 202B, which is
the only one
numbered for explanation purposes, shows the map data for the particular or
fixed geographic
region at zoom level, z = 2, which is formed of 18 map data tiles, 204A-204R.
The map data
tiles may represent the basic building blocks for constructing a map display.
Each map data
tile may contain necessary map data to construct a portion of the map display
(e.g., a map
surface), including data identifying various map objects or map features such
as roads,
buildings, and geographic boundaries, such as water lines, county lines, city
boundaries, state
lines, mountains, parks, etc. The map data for a geographic region may be
stored in any
number of different zoom level data structures to provide different levels of
detail for the
particular geographic region. In an embodiment, nineteen total zoom levels may
be stored in
the map database 12.
[0033] The number of tiles for a fixed geographic region at each zoom level
may increase,
e.g., linearly, quadratically, exponentially, or otherwise as the zoom level
number increases.
The zoom levels in the illustrated example (z = 1, 2, and 5) have 6, 18, and
60 map data tiles,
respectively, covering the same geographic area or region. Because the number
of map data
tiles may increase for the same area as zoom level increases, zoom level may
be considered a
density of map data corresponding to a number of tiles per unit area. Higher
zoom levels
may generally require more tiles per unit area and thus provide higher map
data density over
lower zoom levels.
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[0034] In the illustrated embodiment, all map data is stored in map data
tiles, and each map
data tile in a zoom level data structure may be allocated the same or similar
memory
allocation size. For example, each tile 204A-204R may be a bitmap image 10
Kbytes in size.
This may be achieved, for example, by having each map data tile cover the same
sized
geographic area. For map data tiles containing vector data, the data size for
each tile may
vary, but each tile may still, in some embodiments, be allotted the same
maximum memory
space. Although not illustrated, in other embodiments, the data tiles may have
different
memory space allocations within each zoom level data structure. In some
embodiments, each
map data tile may contain map data stored in a bitmap format while in other
embodiments
each map data tile may contain map data stored in vector format.
[0035] Figs. 4A-4C illustrate visual map displays, e.g., that may be fully or
partially
displayed on the user interface 34, where each figure may provide a visual
display of a map
surface at a different zoom level. In the illustrated embodiments, Fig. 4A
provides a visual
map display 300 at an example zoom level, z = 6, constructed of a series of
map data tiles
302-318, which cover the same size geographic area and which have the same
amount of
memory size.
[0036] In operation, the server 14 may be configured to transmit map data to
respective
client devices 16-22 in chunks of data defined by these map data tiles. For
example, to
transmit the map data needed to construct the map display 300, the server 14
may transmit
each map data tile in a frame, having a header portion providing
identification data of the
frame (such as geographic position, client device address, map data tile
version number, etc.)
and a payload portion containing the specific map data tile data to be used in
forming the
visual display. Map data tiles may provide an effective mechanism for
quantizing map data
stored in the map database 12 and for quantizing communication of the map data
over the
network 25 to the client devices 16-22.
[0037] In comparison to Fig. 4A, Fig. 4B illustrates a visual map display 400
at a zoom
level higher than the zoom level of Fig. 4A, in this example zoom level, z =
10. The map
display 400 may be formed of a plurality of map data tiles 402-432. Like the
map data tiles
302-318, the map data tiles 402-432 are each the same in size, e.g., covering
the same size of
a geographic area and having the same memory size. Fig. 4C illustrates another
visual map
display 480 at a third even higher zoom level, zoom level z = 12, formed of
map data tiles.
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[0038] Each of the displays 300, 400, and 480 may illustrate a portion of the
overall map
data, which comprises many more map data tiles. As illustrated across Figs. 4A-
4C, the map
data tiles that form each visual map display may have various levels of
detail. The tiles 302-
318 may illustrate geographic boundaries, but no roads, only highways and/or
interstates,
while the tiles of Fig. 4C may be at a higher zoom level and contain
information on roads,
buildings, parks, end points, etc.
[0039] While a user interacts with the visual map displays 300, 400, and 480,
the user may
wish to scroll around to display other map data (corresponding to different
geographic areas)
near the illustrated map data. Therefore, the client devices 16-22 may use a
system to fetch
and store a sufficient amount of map data to form the visual map display while
buffering
additional map data at one of the local client devices 16-22 to allow
efficient user interaction
with that display.
[0040] Fig. 5 illustrates a viewing window 500 of a route 501. The route may
be projected
on to a map surface or map area. Generally, the route 501 may comprise an
origin 502, a
destination 504, and a set of roads, streets, paths, segments etc. 506 that
together connect the
origin 502 to the destination 504. A set, as used herein, includes one or more
elements. The
set of roads may be ordered as a sequence of roads. The route 501 may have a
direction
which may also be indicated by the sequence of the set of roads. The route 501
may be
determined in a number of manners. For example, a user may specify an origin
and a
destination (e.g., the user may input two addresses) and a mapping application
may
determine, using data from a mapping database, a set of streets that may
connect the two
points or locations, thereby forming a route. In some instances, the mapping
application may
determine a plurality of routes connecting the origin and destination, where a
user may be
given an option to select or designate at least one of the possible routes for
processing.
Alternatively the user may provide the mapping application with a route
including an origin,
a destination, and a collection of paths (e.g., roads) connecting the origin
and destination.
[0041] In an embodiment of the techniques described herein, a map database,
such as map
database 12, may be accessed to pre-fetch or retrieve map data (e.g., map data
tiles)
corresponding to a map area that encompasses a determined route. In another
embodiment,
map data may be pre-fetched to generate one or more routes. The map data used
to generate
a route may be contained in the same map data tiles used to provide
information for
displaying a route. In a different embodiment, the data used to generate the
route may be
contained in map data tiles separate from the map data tiles used to render
the route. In
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another embodiment, the data used to generate the route may be contained in a
data form
different from map data tiles. Pre-fetching generally involves initiating a
retrieval of map
data before that data is needed for processing. For example, pre-fetching may
involve
retrieving map data before an initiation of a rendering or display function
utilizing that map
data. Pre-fetching may also involve storing map data in a local memory for
faster retrieval
over a map database. For example, the speed of accessing a local memory may be
faster than
the speed of accessing a map database (e.g., due to intermittent connection,
connection
bandwidth, etc.). In situations where a mobile device is only able to
intermittently access the
server 14 over network 25, pre-fetching may involve scheduling access and
retrieval of map
data whenever the client device is able to connect to the server 14, whether
or not the mobile
device/user has even requested access to that data (e.g., via a request or
function to render
map data corresponding to the pre-fetched data).
[0042] Fig. 6 illustrates the route 501 of Fig. 5 with square areas 510
disposed around the
route. It should be noted that the term "around" when used with reference to a
location or
point is meant to include the location or point. Thus, "around the
destination" includes an
area adjacent to the destination as well as the destination point itself. The
squares 510 may
represent discrete areas of the map corresponding to discrete units of map
data. With respect
to map data tiles described above, each square area 510 may represent or
correspond with a
map data tile for particular zoom level. The areas 510 may represent only a
subset of a total
set of map data tiles available or retrievable. For example, where map data
tiles may
generally exist for the entire viewing window 600, the map data tiles
represented by areas
510 are only a fraction of the total map data tiles for the viewing window.
[0043] Fig. 6 illustrates that at a particular zoom level, a minimum amount of
map data for
displaying a route may include at least a set of map data tiles that
correspond to an area that
encompasses every point on the route. In one embodiment, a minimum amount of
map data
may be pre-fetched or retrieved for a route by accessing via a map database
the map data tiles
corresponding to squares 510 of Fig. 6. For example, one of the devices of
system 10 may
include instructions that, upon execution by a processor, determine whether a
point on a route
is included within a map data tile and determine or identify the map data
tiles that comprise
the minimum number of map data tiles that encompass the route.
[0044] A greater area around the route may be desired for some rendering
situations of a
mapping application. Generally, the method and system may determine a subset
of map data
tiles for an area encompassing the route (e.g., the route of Figs. 5-9) by
determining a tile
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radius of points along the route, including an origin and a destination. Fig.
7 illustrates an
example visual map display 700 showing a portion of available map data stored
in the map
database 12, at a first (arbitrary) zoom level. A point of interest 704 is
shown with an
assigned map tile radius 754. The map tile radius 754 represents a radial
distance from the
point of interest 704 for identifying tiles to fetch from the map database 12.
The tile radius
754, in Fig. 7, extends from the point of interest 704 to identify a plurality
of map data tiles
associated with the point of interest that are disposed within a circumference
region 756
defined by the identified tile radius, R. In the illustrated embodiment, this
region 756 defines
the set of pre-fetch map data tiles that are to be identified, for example,
from the map
database 12 and sent to one of the client devices 16-22. In one example, any
map data tile
overlapping even partially with the circumference region 756 will be within
the set of pre-
fetch map data tiles. These tiles are shaded in Fig. 7.
[0045] Fig. 8 illustrates two points 802, 804 along a route segment 810 (e.g.,
a road
segment) with corresponding tile radii 810. The shaded area of Fig. 8
illustrates map data
tiles that may be retrieved for the route segment 810 based on the radii 802,
804. In Fig. 8,
only a few points (e.g., points that are spaced apart by a constant interval)
along the road may
be used to determine map radii and the corresponding shaded area may be
retrieved. In other
embodiments, more points may be used to define map tile radii for a line
segment.
Moreover, while a line segment, such as a road segment, may comprise an
infinite number of
points, map tile requests do not necessarily require a great number of
requests or
identifications for data tiles. Instead, a shaded area of interest may be
calculated (using an
integral function, for example) for the entire length of the line segment and
a single
calculation may be made to identify all tiles within a radius of the route. A
single call may
then be made to retrieve all the corresponding map data tiles (e.g., at one
time).
[0046] Fig. 9 illustrates a process flow diagram or flow chart of a method,
routine, or
process 900 that may be used to pre-fetch map data for a map surface such as
that illustrated
in Figs. 5-6. The method 900 may include one or more blocks, modules,
functions or
routines in the form of computer-executable instructions that are stored in a
tangible
computer-readable medium and executed using a processor of the server 14 or
client devices
16-22. The method 900 may be included as a module or component of any backend
device
(e.g., the server 14) or frontend device (e.g., the client devices 16-22) of a
computing
environment for the system described herein, or as part of a module that is
external to such a
system. Figure 9 will be described with reference to the Figures for ease of
explanation, but
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the method 900 can of course be utilized with other objects and user
interfaces. In any event,
a block 902 determines route information including information on an origin, a
destination,
and a set of roads connecting the origin and destination. This may be received
in response to
one or more instructions executing within a mapping application on one of the
client devices
16-22. The block 902 may also pre-fetch map data used to generate a route. As
discussed,
this map data for generating a route may take the form of map data tiles which
may be
different or same as the map data tiles for rendering a route or may be stored
as a separate
data form altogether. In one embodiment, the map data for generating a route
may be in the
form of turn-by-turn instructions that define a route.
[0047] A block 904 may determine a set of map tile radii for points along the
route. In one
embodiment, block 904 may determine a minimum tile radius for all points along
the route.
The minimum map tile radius may be selected to enable a minimum number of map
data tiles
to be selected that corresponds with an area that encompasses the entire route
(such as that of
Fig. 6). This minimum map tile radius may be considered a fixed radius for the
entire route.
In other embodiments, block 904 may also determine a set of map tile radii for
points of
interest or points of priority along the route. These points of interest may
be determined to
have radii larger than the minimum tile radius (to be discussed further
below). Once the radii
are determined for the route, a block 906 may access a map database, such as
map database
12, for the map data tiles corresponding to the radii determined in block 904.
A block 908
may then retrieve the map data tiles corresponding to the radii determined in
block 904 and
store the retrieved tiles in a local memory of a client device 16-22.
[0048] In one embodiment, a point along a route may be assigned a priority
value. For
example, priority may be assigned or designated using a flag, an attribute, or
other indicator
associated with a point on the route. A route segment may be defined by a set
of points, and
thus, the route segment (e.g., a road segment of the route) may correspond to
a priority when
a set of points defining the route segment are assigned that priority.
Further, a priority
attribute may simply be a high or a low value (i.e., priority or no priority).
In other
embodiments, the priority may be a scaled value between a high and a low
value.
[0049] The method and system described herein may determine one or more points
of
interest to display to a user via the interface 34. The points of interest may
be determined
based on a user input, for example, through the user providing an address into
a data field
presented on the interface 34, or through the user selecting to find a point
of interest obtained
through interaction with the interface 34. Generally, the priority of a point
along the route
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may represent or may be determined by a likelihood that a user may initiate a
function that
accesses map data corresponding to the point. This may correspond to a user
initiating a
function to display a portion of the map using particular map data. The
likelihood of access
may be determined based on metrics of the system in operation, including, for
example,
analysis of the average number and times that instructions of the mapping
application are
executed to access the map data.
[0050] In one embodiment, the origin and destination may be assigned by
default as points
of interest having a high priority. Fig. 10 illustrates an area 1000 that
encompasses the
determined route 501 (Fig. 5) where there is map data corresponding to a
greater area around
the origin 502 and destination 504 than along the route 506 connecting the
origin 502 and
destination 504. Fig. 10 illustrates that the origin 502 and destination 504
may be assigned a
higher priority than a set of points along the route 506 between the origin
and destination. In
this case, larger map tile radii are assigned to the origin 502 and
destination 504. The origin
and destination may represent default points of interest. In this case, a
greater amount of data
is retrieved for the high priority points (origin and destination) than for
the lower priority
points of the connecting route.
[0051] In some embodiments, the destination 504 may have higher priority, and
thus more
map data corresponding to a greater area, than the origin 502. This may apply
to situations
when a user intends to travel to the destination and is more likely to require
more information
at the destination (potentially longer stay time) than at an origin
(potentially less stay time
since the user may be leaving). There are some situations, however, where the
origin may
require a greater amount of priority and may have a greater map area. This may
be the case,
for example, when the complexity of the area about the origin (e.g.,
complexity increases as
the number of junctions, roads, and terrain complexities increases) is high
and a greater
amount of map area is needed for navigating through the area about the origin.
[0052] Fig. 11A illustrates a viewing window 1100 of a map surface showing
multiple
points of interest 502, 504, and 1101. Fig. 11A illustrates a special point of
interest 1101 on
the route 501 between the origin 502 and the destination 504. In this
situation, the point of
interest 1101 may be assigned a higher priority, and a larger tile radius,
than the surrounding
route. This point of interest may be a city, a town, or other landmark that
has been assigned a
high priority. A plurality of points of interest along the route may be
assigned a high priority
and greater amounts of map data tiles may be retrieved for those points of
interest.
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[0053] Fig. 11B illustrates a viewing window 1150 of the route 501 that has a
special point
of interest 1120 located a distance offset from the route 501 between the
origin 502 and the
destination 504. In this situation, an area 1125 around the point 1120 may be
designated and
corresponding map data tiles marked for the area 1125. In one embodiment, a
tile radius for
the point of interest 1120 may be determined so that a circumference of the
tile radius
overlaps with a tile radius of a point along the route 501 closest to the
point of interest 1120.
This may be convenient for points of interest that are located near the route
501. In another
embodiment, the method and system may determine one or more paths from a point
along the
route to the point of interest 1120 that is outside the route. Whether or not
a path is
determined for the point of interest 1120 may depend on a distance between the
point of
interest 1120 and the path 501. For example, a path may be determined for a
route to an off-
route point of interest 1120 when a distance to the point is at or below a
threshold distance to
account for a greater likelihood that a user will travel a shorter off-route
distance to go to the
point 1120 than a longer off-route distance.
[0054] Priority of points along the route may be determined based on user
input, for
example, through the user providing an address into a data field presented on
the interface 34,
or through the user selecting to find a point of interest obtained through
interaction with the
interface 34, more generally. For example, the user can access a web-browser
or other
program running on the client device that identifies a location, business,
home, etc., from
which one of the client devices 16-22 may allow the user to select such item
for building a
map display of the vicinity around such point of interest.
[0055] Any suitable manual method for entering or otherwise identifying one or
more
points of interest may be used by one of the client devices 16-22.
Furthermore, a mapping
application on one of the client devices 16-22 may automatically identify
points of interest,
for example, by determining a GPS position of the current location of one of
the client
devices 16-22, by determining most recently searched points of interest, by
accessing a
database of stored points of interest, or by determining the most recently
visited points of
interest (e.g., cities, neighborhoods, etc.). Of course, in some of these
cases, the mapping
application may determine locations for which to download map data for storage
at the user
device as a background application and thus without any particular user
interaction.
[0056] As discussed above, process blocks 906-908 may access a map database to
pre-
fetch larger numbers of map data tiles corresponding to larger map areas
around points of
interest at a single zoom level. In one embodiment, instead of or in addition
to pre-fetching
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more map data tiles at a first single zoom level for high priority points, the
method and
system may pre-fetch map data tiles for high priority points at a second
higher zoom level.
Fig. 12 illustrates the same route of Fig. 6 having areas 506 representing the
same size map
data tiles as the zoom level of Fig 6. In addition, Fig. 12 illustrates
additional map data tiles
represented by areas 1210 of a second higher zoom level. A user wishing to
zoom into an
area around the origin 502 or destination 504 may initiate a zoom function of
the viewing
window. When the higher zoom level map data tiles are pre-fetched to one of
the client
devices 16-22, a response time for rendering those map data tiles may be
relatively fast.
[0057] Of course, in addition to retrieving additional map data tiles at the
second higher
zoom level, the method and system may also retrieve map data tiles at a second
higher zoom
level for a different area than that of the first zoom level or for a
different area in relation to
other points on the route at the second higher zoom level. Also, the method
and system may
or may not retrieve higher zoom level data for points along the route at low
priority (e.g., in
the middle of the route, without a point of interest, etc.). Whether higher
zoom level map
data is retrieved for points about the middle of the route may be dependent on
the priority of
points along the route. As discussed above, priority of a point on the route
may be based in
part on a determination of a likelihood of access for that map data.
[0058] The method and system described above may retrieve or process and store
into a
cache memory of a client device 16-22 only a subset of available or
retrievable map data tiles
based on determined areas encompassing a determined route. This method and
system may
provide a faster response time when anticipated map data is downloaded to a
local cache
memory for quick retrieval and processing. While one type of priority
discussed above is
based on designating what map data (area and/or zoom level data around a
route) to retrieve,
a second type of priority may be an order or sequence in which that map data
is retrieved.
The sequence of map data retrieval (e.g., map data tiles) may help to reduce
bandwidth and
processor tolls. The sequence of map data retrieval may also ensure that more
important,
high priority tiles are downloaded first in case a connection to a server
containing the map
data is lost during retrieval.
[0059] Fig. 13 illustrates a process flow for determining when and in what
order to retrieve
map data tiles. Block 1302 may determine sets of different map data to
receive. The sets of
map data may correspond to the map data determined as discussed above. For
example, a
first set of map data may correspond with the area around the origin, a second
set of map data
may correspond with the area around the destination, a third set of map data
may correspond
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with the area along the path between the origin and destination, and a fourth
set of map data
may correspond to an additional point of interest. Additional sets may involve
different
zoom level data for portions of the route (e.g., origin, destination, road
segments, and other
points of interest).
[0060] A block 1304 may then determine a current condition of the system
(e.g., a viewing
window state, a current bandwidth, a current processor capacity, etc.). A
block 1306 may
then determine a sequence for pre-fetching each set of map data determined in
block 1302.
The determination of block 1306 may be performed based on the condition
determined in
block 1304. The sequence determined by block 1306 may be a fixed default
sequence that is
based on a likely order of access by a user. This may be the case when block
1304 indicates
a default condition. At block 1308, a map database may be accessed in the
sequence
determined by block 1307 for each set of map data tiles of block 1302. At
block 1310, the
accessed map data may then be retrieved and/or stored in a local memory for
quick access
when a user or the map application initiates an access or processing function
requiring the
map data.
[0061] A general sequence may involve retrieving map data for a destination,
an origin,
additional points of interest along the route, and then connection segments
(roads segments)
to various off-route points of interest. Another sequence may lead with an
overview set of
map data that includes a minimum map tile data for a zoom level and viewing
window
position that includes the origin and destination in one displayable viewing
screen (such as
that of Fig. 5). Another sequence may include map data on the overview set at
a first zoom
level, map data of origin and destination at a higher zoom level, then map
data corresponding
to road segments at the first zoom level. In yet another sequence, the origin
data may precede
the destination data when origin is assigned a higher priority. This may be
the case when an
origin contains a complex traffic condition. Another case may be when
additional
information on a current user position (e.g., via a GPS positioning signal)
places the user
along a route away from the origin. In other situations, map data for points
of interest along
the route may have a higher priority than an origin. Of course other sequences
are possible
and within the scope of operation of the techniques described herein.
[0062] In one embodiment, both the sequence and area of map data tiles may be
accessed
or pre-fetched based on a viewing window state. In particular, the map data
tiles may be
accessed based on a viewing window position. The viewing window position may
be
centered near a particular point along the route. As the viewing window
position is changed
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so that the center position approaches other portions of the route, either
additional area map
data may be retrieved (e.g., via blocks 906-908) or a sequence of retrieval
may be changed
(e.g., via blocks 1306-1310). This embodiment may be used in situations in
which a current
position of a device rendering a map is provided to center the map at that
current position
(e.g., using a GPS system).
[0063] The amount of map tile data and the sequence in which subsets of the
map tile data
are accessed may be based on a current bandwidth or processor load of the
system of Fig. 1.
Decisions of whether to download a greater or smaller radius of map data tiles
may depend
on bandwidth and/or latency considerations associated with retrieving the
amount of map
data tiles from a server. In some embodiments, bandwidth considerations may
depend on
checking whether a current bandwidth/time-to-download for retrieving map data
tiles is
above a threshold. For example, one of the client devices 16-22 may check a
current
download rate of a retrieval process to determine whether to retrieve
additional map data tiles
corresponding to a larger tile radius.
[0064] Processor capacity for performing map database access may be
considered. For
example, a current processor capacity may be checked against a threshold. This
may be the
case when a current condition of the mapping application requires reduced data
retrieval
and/or processing due to processor load. For example, where the processor is
overloaded or
backed up (the processor capacity is low or below a threshold), the map data
tile radii may be
shortened to reduce the total amount of map data tiles retrieved and
processed, thereby
lessening processor workload.
[0065] Further, the sequence and amount of the pre-fetch map data tiles may be
based on
memory conditions. For example, there may be a limited amount of memory
allocated for
pre-fetch map data. The corresponding areas of map data tiles may be scaled
appropriately to
take into account a memory budget. The sequence of retrieval may be reordered
based on a
memory budget. Alternatively, the number of map data tile sets may be reduced
based on the
memory budget.
[0066] Any suitable subset of the blocks of Figs. 9 and 13 may be implemented
in any
suitable order by a number of different devices (e.g., client or server) and
remain consistent
with the method and system described herein. Moreover, additional
determination blocks
may be added to refine the filtering of style parameters subject to
interpolation processing.
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[0067] Throughout this specification, plural instances may implement
components,
operations, or structures described as a single instance. Although individual
operations of
one or more methods are illustrated and described as separate operations, one
or more of the
individual operations may be performed concurrently, and nothing requires that
the
operations be performed in the order illustrated. Structures and functionality
presented as
separate components in example configurations may be implemented as a combined
structure
or component. Similarly, structures and functionality presented as a single
component may
be implemented as separate components. These and other variations,
modifications,
additions, and improvements fall within the scope of the subject matter
herein.
[0068] For example, the network 25 may include but is not limited to any
combination of a
LAN, a MAN, a WAN, a mobile, a wired or wireless network, a private network,
or a virtual
private network. Moreover, while only four client devices are illustrated in
Fig. 1 to simplify
and clarify the description, it is understood that any number of client
computers or display
devices are supported and can be in communication with the server 14.
[0069] Additionally, certain embodiments are described herein as including
logic or a
number of components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules may constitute either
software
modules (e.g., code embodied on a machine-readable medium or in a transmission
signal) or
hardware modules. A hardware module is tangible unit capable of performing
certain
operations and may be configured or arranged in a certain manner. In example
embodiments,
one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone, client or server computer
system) or one or
more hardware modules of a computer system (e.g., a processor or a group of
processors)
may be configured by software (e.g., an application or application portion) as
a hardware
module that operates to perform certain operations as described herein.
[0070] In various embodiments, a hardware module may be implemented
mechanically or
electronically. For example, a hardware module may comprise dedicated
circuitry or logic
that is permanently configured (e.g., as a special-purpose processor, such as
a field
programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application-specific integrated circuit
(ASIC)) to
perform certain operations. A hardware module may also comprise programmable
logic or
circuitry (e.g., as encompassed within a general-purpose processor or other
programmable
processor) that is temporarily configured by software to perform certain
operations. It will be
appreciated that the decision to implement a hardware module mechanically, in
dedicated and
permanently configured circuitry, or in temporarily configured circuitry
(e.g., configured by
software) may be driven by cost and time considerations.
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[0071] Accordingly, the term hardware should be understood to encompass a
tangible
entity, be that an entity that is physically constructed, permanently
configured (e.g.,
hardwired), or temporarily configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a
certain manner or to
perform certain operations described herein. Considering embodiments in which
hardware
modules are temporarily configured (e.g., programmed), each of the hardware
modules need
not be configured or instantiated at any one instance in time. For example,
where the
hardware modules comprise a general-purpose processor configured using
software, the
general-purpose processor may be configured as respective different hardware
modules at
different times. Software may accordingly configure a processor, for example,
to constitute a
particular hardware module at one instance of time and to constitute a
different hardware
module at a different instance of time.
[0072] Hardware and software modules can provide information to, and receive
information from, other hardware and/or software modules. Accordingly, the
described
hardware modules may be regarded as being communicatively coupled. Where
multiple of
such hardware or software modules exist contemporaneously, communications may
be
achieved through signal transmission (e.g., over appropriate circuits and
buses) that connect
the hardware or software modules. In embodiments in which multiple hardware
modules or
software are configured or instantiated at different times, communications
between such
hardware or software modules may be achieved, for example, through the storage
and
retrieval of information in memory structures to which the multiple hardware
or software
modules have access. For example, one hardware or software module may perform
an
operation and store the output of that operation in a memory device to which
it is
communicatively coupled. A further hardware or software module may then, at a
later time,
access the memory device to retrieve and process the stored output. Hardware
and software
modules may also initiate communications with input or output devices, and can
operate on a
resource (e.g., a collection of information).
[0073] The various operations of example methods described herein may be
performed, at
least partially, by one or more processors that are temporarily configured
(e.g., by software)
or permanently configured to perform the relevant operations. Whether
temporarily or
permanently configured, such processors may constitute processor-implemented
modules that
operate to perform one or more operations or functions. The modules referred
to herein may,
in some example embodiments, comprise processor-implemented modules.
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[0074] Similarly, the methods or routines described herein may be at least
partially
processor-implemented. For example, at least some of the operations of a
method may be
performed by one or processors or processor-implemented hardware modules. The
performance of certain of the operations may be distributed among the one or
more
processors, not only residing within a single machine, but deployed across a
number of
machines. In some example embodiments, the processor or processors may be
located in a
single location (e.g., within a home environment, an office environment or as
a server farm),
while in other embodiments the processors may be distributed across a number
of locations.
[0075] The one or more processors may also operate to support performance of
the
relevant operations in a "cloud computing" environment or as a "software as a
service"
(SaaS). For example, at least some of the operations may be performed by a
group of
computers (as examples of machines including processors), these operations
being accessible
via a network (e.g., the Internet) and via one or more appropriate interfaces
(e.g., application
program interfaces (APIs).)
[0076] The performance of certain of the operations may be distributed among
the one or
more processors, not only residing within a single machine, but deployed
across a number of
machines. In some example embodiments, the one or more processors or processor-
implemented modules may be located in a single geographic location (e.g.,
within a home
environment, an office environment, or a server farm). In other example
embodiments, the
one or more processors or processor-implemented modules may be distributed
across a
number of geographic locations.
[0077] Some portions of this specification are presented in terms of
algorithms or symbolic
representations of operations on data stored as bits or binary digital signals
within a machine
memory (e.g., a computer memory). These algorithms or symbolic representations
are
examples of techniques used by those of ordinary skill in the data processing
arts to convey
the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. As used herein, an
"algorithm" or a
"routine" is a self-consistent sequence of operations or similar processing
leading to a desired
result. In this context, algorithms, routines and operations involve physical
manipulation of
physical quantities. Typically, but not necessarily, such quantities may take
the form of
electrical, magnetic, or optical signals capable of being stored, accessed,
transferred,
combined, compared, or otherwise manipulated by a machine. It is convenient at
times,
principally for reasons of common usage, to refer to such signals using words
such as "data,"
"content," "bits," "values," "elements," "symbols," "characters," "terms,"
"numbers,"
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"numerals," or the like. These words, however, are merely convenient labels
and are to be
associated with appropriate physical quantities.
[0078] Unless specifically stated otherwise, discussions herein using words
such as
"processing," "computing," "calculating," "determining," "presenting,"
"displaying," or the
like may refer to actions or processes of a machine (e.g., a computer) that
manipulates or
transforms data represented as physical (e.g., electronic, magnetic, or
optical) quantities
within one or more memories (e.g., volatile memory, non-volatile memory, or a
combination
thereof), registers, or other machine components that receive, store,
transmit, or display
information.
[0079] As used herein any reference to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment"
means that
a particular element, feature, structure, or characteristic described in
connection with the
embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. The appearances of the
phrase "in one
embodiment" in various places in the specification are not necessarily all
referring to the
same embodiment.
[0080] Some embodiments may be described using the expression "coupled" and
"connected" along with their derivatives. For example, some embodiments may be
described
using the term "coupled" to indicate that two or more elements are in direct
physical or
electrical contact. The term "coupled," however, may also mean that two or
more elements
are not in direct contact with each other, but yet still cooperate or interact
with each other.
The embodiments are not limited in this context.
[0081] As used herein, the terms "comprises," "comprising," "includes,"
"including,"
"has," "having" or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-
exclusive
inclusion. For example, a process, method, article, or apparatus that
comprises a list of
elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements but may include
other elements not
expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.
Further, unless
expressly stated to the contrary, "or" refers to an inclusive or and not to an
exclusive or. For
example, a condition A or B is satisfied by any one of the following: A is
true (or present)
and B is false (or not present), A is false (or not present) and B is true (or
present), and both
A and B are true (or present).
[0082] In addition, use of the "a" or "an" are employed to describe elements
and
components of the embodiments herein. This is done merely for convenience and
to give a
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general sense of the description. This description should be read to include
one or at least
one and the singular also includes the plural unless it is obvious that it is
meant otherwise.
[0083] Still further, the figures depict preferred embodiments of a map
rendering system
for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readily
recognize from the
following discussion that alternative embodiments of the structures and
methods illustrated
herein may be employed without departing from the principles described herein.
[0084] Upon reading this disclosure, those of skill in the art will appreciate
still additional
alternative structural and functional designs for a system and a process for
rendering map or
other types of images using the principles disclosed herein. Thus, while
particular
embodiments and applications have been illustrated and described, it is to be
understood that
the disclosed embodiments are not limited to the precise construction and
components
disclosed herein. Various modifications, changes and variations, which will be
apparent to
those skilled in the art, may be made in the arrangement, operation and
details of the method
and apparatus disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope
defined in the
appended claims.
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